Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180°C). Line a muffin pan with liners and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, beat the butter, sugar, and oil on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add eggs, sour cream, milk, and vanilla extract, then beat for 1 minute.

On low speed, mix in the dry ingredients until fully combined.

Fill the muffin liners halfway. Bake for 17-19 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting.

Beat butter, vanilla extract, and salt on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of milk or cream, mixing on low until smooth. Adjust sweetness by adding more powdered sugar if desired. If too thick, thin with 2-4 additional tablespoons of milk or cream.

Use gel food coloring to dye about 1 ½ cups frosting yellow and about 2 Tablespoons frosting orange. Mix until fully tinted.

Using an offset spatula or butter knife, frost the top of each cupcake with a generous amount of yellow frosting, smoothing it into a dome shape.

Gently roll or sprinkle the frosted top with yellow sanding sugar until it’s fully coated. This gives the chicks a fluffy, sparkly look.

Place 2 mini chocolate chips, point side down, near the top center of each cupcake for the eyes.

Use the orange frosting in a piping bag (or a zip-top bag with the tip snipped) to pipe a small triangle beak just below the eyes. Pipe two small orange feet at the bottom using the same piping bag.

Using a piping bag or spatula, frost each cupcake with a generous swirl of vanilla frosting. For a tall swirl, use a large round tip and pipe in a spiral from the outer edge inward.

Make the Bunny Ears: Lightly dip your kitchen scissors in water before cutting to prevent the marshmallow from sticking. Cut each marshmallow in half on the diagonal to create two teardrop-shaped pieces—these will be the ears. Immediately dip the sticky cut side of each piece into pink sanding sugar to create the “inner ear” look. Gently press two ears into the top of each frosted cupcake.

Add the Face: Place two mini chocolate chips, tip side down, for the bunny’s eyes. Press a pink jelly bean below the eyes for the nose.

Add a small amount of blue gel food coloring to your buttercream to create a soft, robin’s egg blue. Mix well until the color is evenly distributed.

Frost the Cupcakes: Using a piping bag or spatula, frost each cupcake with a generous swirl or dome of blue frosting. Smooth the tops for a clean look.

Speckle the Cupcakes: Dip a small food-safe paintbrush or new toothbrush into the cocoa paint. Hold it a few inches above the cupcakes and flick the brush bristles with your finger to splatter cocoa speckles across the frosting. Pro Tip: Do this over a baking sheet or parchment paper to contain any mess.